The Asheville citizen. [volume] (Asheville, N.C.) 1885-1889, 1887-04-16
IFor the Asheville CITIZEN.
THE PROOF FURNISHED.

ienges me to su bstantiate some assertions
made by myself in an article published
In the Methodist AdUocate, Chattanooga
Tenn. In undertaking to comply with
BIO. Bays oft repeated demand that ]
furnish the proof, 1 feel no manner of em.
barrassment as am EARNED at all points,
exactly cap-G-pie." Neither do 1 feel a
disposition to write in that silly, bitter,
undignified. and even sacreligious man
ner in which Bro Bays has seen proper
TO deliver himself Ifmy statements are
correct it is enough for me to make that
fact appear; if they are false no amount
of abuse and rituPeration directed against
a brother minister of the Gospel of Love
viii make them true
In furnishing the sslnrt1ess Of pf5ofz'
dem fia SD l-asl re I1l5 lf
to the statements made in my article TO
the Metlt0dist a Adgocdte without becoming
responsible for any erroneous or exag-
gerated eonclnsi ms Bro. Bays SEEMS to
have drawn from them.
The first statement st which Bro. Bays
takes ofense is: The N. E. Church,
ViLie papers hu6itaatty LedUeS the acord
IOOULC HIS OOdbODlOdG 10 d6ulSu bsy
Bro. Bays in the following emphatic
language: 81 deny that the NJ. E. Church.
South, in Ashevil,e habitnally advertises
| herself as the Methodist Episcopal
Church" These statements cannot be
more antsgonistic or diametricallY oppos-
ed, hence they cannot both be true, but
one must be false. Let US appeal to the
records and see which one it is
In copy of the CITIZEN, daily paper
published in Asheville, dated September
26th, 1856, find the following notice
standing first under the heading. AsheUiHe
Church Directory "MetAodist Episcogal
Church, Church St, Rev. w. w. Bays
morning services IL a. M; evening SER
vices u p. m prayer meeting, Wednel-
day evening u p. m; Sunday School
a. NJ"
In looking over the files of the daily
CITIZEN for 1886 she same notice occur
red in every issue l examined and I was
told by-one of the Editors lat the same
| form had been used through the entire
year. The papers are there to speak for
themselves and l ask every interested
person to go and examine for themselves
Those who will take the trouble to do so
will find that the NJ. E. Church, South,
was advertised as the M. E. Church
more than THREE HUNDRED TIMES in one
newspaper during the year 1886.
The AdUance, another daily paper pub
lished in the city of Ashevilie, publish
ed no regular church notices during the
year 1886, but usually mentioned in the
Sunday morning issue that the usual SER
vices would be held at the various
churches, frequently giving formal rorires
of the services at Bro. Bays church. In
looking over a part of the files of the
AdUdaecc for the year 1886, I found toCelUe
of these special notices of services to be
! held at the NJ. E. Church, South, and IN
every case the word South was left off.
In not a single instance did l see the
word South" in connection with the
uany advertisement, of the services of
that church except once in a notice of a
| WOma1e's meeting which was signed by a
lady. Four of these notices announced
that visiting ministers would preach, two
w = notices of Quarterly Meeting services,
two of missionary services, and others were
notices of special sermons which Bro.
Bays proposed to preach. was told at
the office of the AdUence that "Mr. Bavs
usually handed IN" these special notices.
invite the people of AsheyilIe to
examine for themselves to see whether
or not these statements are true.
! Before l ask my readers to decide
whether or Bro. Bays is in error as }
the matter of advertisement, l will in
troduce one more witness, "for in the
mouth of two or three witnesses every
| word shall be established" The T0wn
Topics is a weekly paper published in
Asheville by a member of Bro. Bays
church. An appeal to the files of this
paper reveals the fact that this word
| South" has been habitually left off in
| the advertisements of the services of the
NJ. E. Church, South; indeed the burden
some" word did not occur in a single
copy of the incomplete file 1 examined.
In this case, as in the others, l ask all
interested parties to examine for them
selves, and also get the acknowledgement
of the Editor to the same fact, as l did.
1 claim that have established beyond
the ShGdoW of q doubt the truth of my
statement. viz: "The M. E. Church
South, in advertising it's services in the
Asheville papers habituaily leaves the
word South" off, The second 'foffen-
sive" statement is: "I am told the pastor
of the church in Asheville never uses
the burdensome word even in the iecep-
ton of members into his church." Bro
I Bays does not attempt to deny the truth
of this statement, but demands that
SHOW cause why he should use the
word South in the reception of mem
bersn and that publicly furnish the
name of my informant cannot imagine
why Bro. Bays desires the name of M
Informant" when he Himself ackn now
ledged to me in private conversation that
: he ''does not use the 'burdensome' wore
when he receives members into hi
t church" and whenAhe can get the tesoi
Inony of hundreds who are regular atten
dants at his church to the truth of my
statement. My informant" however
, may say, vas a regular attendant a
Bro. Bays church, a man of unimpe ach
! able Christian character, and who woulC
not designedly misrepresent a fellow
Christian to save his right arm. 1t doe
: not deyolve upon me to "show cause lUIal
. he should use the word South" as thu
truth of my statement does not reqAir
; it, and as am not responsible for Wha
Bro. Bays should or should not do.
will say, however. that the church Q
which l have the honor to be membe
:, employs its fpH chartered ame teCice in it
! form for the reception of mem bers. Now
. | if there is any cause" why the frs
OriQinaE, MOTHER of all the ten or twelv
Methodist churches in America shoul
use her proper, legal name, and her goo
and great men for more than 100 year
! have thought there is on such occasions
= there certainly is reason why Bro. Bay
should use the fall name of the MethoC
list Episcopal Church, South, when receiX
ling members into that church, especial
Z when there are in the same town az
!. country number OF Methodist churches
y distinguished by thei. respective name
and more especially when it is more tho
probable that there are strGNgers at b